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Most of the islands are located near the town of Stoney Creek, but unlike other islands in the sound which are made up of glacial terminal moraines, the Thimble Islands are very stable pieces of rock made up of Stoney Creek pink granite bedrock. This type of granite has been mined from this area to build such structures as the Lincoln Memorial, the Brooklyn Bridge, Grant’s Tomb, and the base of the Statue of Liberty. You might think that the islands received their name because of their small shape and size, but the local thought is that they were named after thimbleberry bushes, a relative of the black raspberry, that once grew on these islands.

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Interest in the islands began to change in the mid-1800s. In 1846, local resident William Bryan built the Thimble Island Hotel on his Pot Island land. Bryan attracted tourists and treasure hunters alike by taking advantage of the legend that Captain Kidd buried his treasure on the islands. Within a month, day-trippers piled onto the steamer Hero for tours to and around the islands. By the next summer Bryan expanded his hotel, offering two bowling alleys, boating, swimming, and fishing. During the 1850s, the railroad running between New Haven and New London made the trip easy for those living in nearby cities, and the islands became a popular resort area offering a respite from busy city life.

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Interest in the islands began to change in the mid-1800s. In 1846, local resident William Bryan built the Thimble Island Hotel on his Pot Island land. Bryan attracted tourists and treasure hunters alike by taking advantage of the legend that Captain Kidd buried his treasure on the islands. Within a month, day-trippers piled onto the steamer Hero for tours to and around the islands. By the next summer Bryan expanded his hotel, offering two bowling alleys, boating, swimming, and fishing. During the 1850s, the railroad running between New Haven and New London made the trip easy for those living in nearby cities, and the islands became a popular resort area offering a respite from busy city life.

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The Thimble Islands were first discovered by Adrian Block in 1614 who also discovered Block Island and were a favorite spot of the Mattabeseck Indians as a summer camping ground. During the 18th century in 1716 the colonists acquired land grants of the islands.  Because Branford was known as a farming community, there was little value found in the islands except as a source of seaweed which was used as a fertilizer and pasture for sheep during the summer on the larger islands.

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Stratford Shoal Lighthouse has frequently been classified as a New York lighthouse, and the land (“less than one acre”) for the lighthouse was indeed ceded to the federal government by the State of New York on May 11, 1874. Official maps today, however, place the lighthouse on the Connecticut side of Long Island Sound by a good 1,000 feet. Most Lighthouse Service records listed Stratford Shoal as a New York station, but it was occasionally listed as a Connecticut station as well. With valid arguments on both sides, the debate over whether the lighthouse should be classified as a Connecticut one or a New York one will likely never be settled. Its location midway between Connecticut and Long Island led to the lighthouse being also known as Middle Ground Lighthouse.

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Stratford Shoal Lighthouse has frequently been classified as a New York lighthouse, and the land (“less than one acre”) for the lighthouse was indeed ceded to the federal government by the State of New York on May 11, 1874. Official maps today, however, place the lighthouse on the Connecticut side of Long Island Sound by a good 1,000 feet. Most Lighthouse Service records listed Stratford Shoal as a New York station, but it was occasionally listed as a Connecticut station as well. With valid arguments on both sides, the debate over whether the lighthouse should be classified as a Connecticut one or a New York one will likely never be settled. Its location midway between Connecticut and Long Island led to the lighthouse being also known as Middle Ground Lighthouse.

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Just east of New Haven, Connecticut, lies the tiny village of Stony Creek (located in Branford).  One of the many highlight’s of Stony Creek’s coastal historic district are the collection of pink granite rocks scattered across the harbor, known at the Thimble Islands; in addition to making a great foundation for a summer cottage - the Thimble Island's pink granite stone was also used to construct the base for NY's very own Statue of Liberty!  The Thimble Islands are a very special group of islands that vary in size, usage, property value, and history.  The first European to come across the islands, was Dutchman Adrian Block, more commonly associated with Rhode Island’s popular destination, Block Island.  Through the generations, Thimble Islands have consistently maintained a truly New England charm like no other.

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Many of the islands have just one Victorian-style home on them, and it feels like you're taken back 150 years. Our guide was full of fun tidbits, like Tom Thumb came to one of the islands to court another little person and circus performer, Miss Emily. And President William Howard Taft made the Thimble Islands his summer White House for a short time.

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Rogers Island is off Stony Creek in Branford, Connecticut. Also known as Yon Comis Island, Rogers bears a 27-room Tudor mansion, with tennis and basketball courts and a caretaker’s residence on a 7.75-acre estate valued at $15.41 million dollars.

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Horse Island, at 17 acres is the largest of the Thimble Islands off Stony Creek. It’s owned by Yale University and is maintained as an ecological laboratory by Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History. It was purchased and donated to the university in 1971 as a convenient addition to the Yale Coastal Field Station in nearby Guilford, which has its own dock and boats. Since then, however, the thrust of biological research at Yale and elsewhere has turned in the direction of molecular biology and research conducted on the island is less active. A large house on the island has been kept in good repair and can serve as a base for experimenters or others remaining on the island for overnight stays or longer.The origins of the island's name are not known. Some say that at some point a cargo of horses may have found its way to the island from a capsized or wrecked ship, but no physical or documentary traces of such an event exist. Others speculate that the island's horseshoe shape may have influenced its name. For many years it was owned by an executive of Standard Oil named Clark, and was called "Clark's Island" by everyone. When James and Esther Rettger purchased the island in 1946 they restored the original name as found on the geodetic survey maps.

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Horse Island, at 17 acres is the largest of the Thimble Islands off Stony Creek. It’s owned by Yale University and is maintained as an ecological laboratory by Yale's Peabody Museum of Natural History. It was purchased and donated to the university in 1971 as a convenient addition to the Yale Coastal Field Station in nearby Guilford, which has its own dock and boats. Since then, however, the thrust of biological research at Yale and elsewhere has turned in the direction of molecular biology and research conducted on the island is less active. A large house on the island has been kept in good repair and can serve as a base for experimenters or others remaining on the island for overnight stays or longer.The origins of the island's name are not known. Some say that at some point a cargo of horses may have found its way to the island from a capsized or wrecked ship, but no physical or documentary traces of such an event exist. Others speculate that the island's horseshoe shape may have influenced its name. For many years it was owned by an executive of Standard Oil named Clark, and was called "Clark's Island" by everyone. When James and Esther Rettger purchased the island in 1946 they restored the original name as found on the geodetic survey maps.

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Outer Island is a 5 acre island located in Long Island Sound. It’s a small archipelago just south of Stony Creek. Outer Island is the southern terminus and most remote island found within this archipelago. It’s on the ten units of the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge. The island was transferred to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995 by Elizabeth Hird. This island provides habitat for marine and avian wildlife. It’s maintained in a cooperative partnership with Southern Connecticut State University and currently used ecological laboratory and an outdoor natural classroom by school groups from the city of New

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Outer Island is a 5 acre island located in Long Island Sound. It’s a small archipelago just south of Stony Creek. Outer Island is the southern terminus and most remote island found within this archipelago. It’s on the ten units of the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge. The island was transferred to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995 by Elizabeth Hird. This island provides habitat for marine and avian wildlife. It’s maintained in a cooperative partnership with Southern Connecticut State University and currently used ecological laboratory and an outdoor natural classroom by school groups from the city of New